Understanding the effect of habitat edges on species interactions (e.g. predation) is critical for determining landscape-scale patterns in productivity and the structuring of communities in an ever-changing environment. Both abiotic cycles and habitat structure can mediate faunal movements across habitat edges and determine predators’ ability to access prey across both space and time. To quantify the

Post-Hurricane Sandy research has improved our understanding of coastal resilience during major storm events, accelerated sea level rise, and other climate-related factors, helping to enhance science-based decision-making, restoration, and management of coastal systems. The central question this special section examines is: “looking across the breadth of research, natural resource management actions

The responses of marsh elevation in four National Parks affected by Hurricane Sandy were examined using empirical data from surface elevation tables (SET) and modeling. The parks examined were Fire Island National Seashore and Gateway National Recreational Area in New York; Cape Cod National Seashore, Massachusetts; and Assateague Island National Seashore, Maryland. Observed vertical accretion rates

This collection of papers provides insights into methods and data currently available to quantify the benefits associated with estuarine habitat restoration projects in the northern Gulf of Mexico, USA, with potential applicability to other coastal systems. Extensive habitat restoration is expected to occur in the northern Gulf of Mexico region over the next several decades through funding associated

The frequency and magnitude of storm events is expected to increase with climate warming. Tidal freshwaters may be particularly sensitive to these events owing to their proximity to riverine inputs. Continuous and synoptic water quality data from riverine and tidal freshwater segments of the James, Mattaponi, and Pamunkey Rivers (Virginia, USA) were analyzed to characterize their response to high discharge

Ghost fishing in derelict blue crab traps is ubiquitous and causes incidental mortality which can be reduced by trap removal programs. In an effort to scale the benefits of such removal programs, in the context of restoring the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, this paper calculates the ecological benefits of trap removal by estimating the extent of derelict blue crab traps across

Hurricane Harvey heavily impacted Texas in August 2017 due to an extreme amount of rainfall, especially in the large metropolitan area in and around Houston. There was an offshore storm surge associated with Harvey, and while it raised the water level in the bay, possibly prolonging flooding in the Houston area by slowing drainage, it was not responsible for flooding, as water flowed continuously out

Vertebrate and invertebrate taxa that serve as forage for predators play a critical role in coastal ecosystems by linking lower trophic levels to ecologically and economically valuable predators in upper trophic levels. We analyzed long-term data from multiple monitoring surveys in Chesapeake Bay and its major tributaries to evaluate patterns and relative abundances of forage at two spatial scales

Billions of dollars are projected to be spent on restoration projects along the northern Gulf Coast which will require efficient monitoring at both landscape and project-specific scales. Recent developments in unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) have sparked interest in the ability of these “drones” to capture hyperspatial imagery (pixel resolution < 10 cm) that resolves individual species and produces

Functional assessment approaches can identify indicators of environmental change and ecological response in estuaries. This study used a 24-year coastal fisheries dataset (1993–2016) and environmental data to evaluate fish assemblage changes in Galveston Bay, Texas (USA) in response to environmental parameters and freshwater inflows, drought, and flood. Functional classification categorized 107 fish

This review evaluates the importance of plants and associated biological processes in determining the vulnerability of coastal wetlands to sea-level rise. Coastal wetlands occur across a broad sedimentary continuum from minerogenic to biogenic, providing an opportunity to examine the relative importance of biological processes in wetland resilience to sea-level rise. We explore how plants influence

Introduction of non-native piscivores has been implicated in the decline of native Chinook Salmon Oncorhynchus tshawytscha via predation during juvenile life stages. However, isolating effects of predation on Chinook Salmon survival is complicated by changes in physical habitat that are often concomitant with non-native piscivore establishment. We performed two field experiments with enclosures deployed

Genetic diversity within coastal foundation species can enhance species and ecosystem resilience to ocean warming and marine heatwaves. However, the effects of diversity on ecosystem function are often context-dependent and mechanisms underpinning, such contingency, remain poorly understood. To test the relationship between genetic diversity and resilience to warming in a coastal foundation species

Tidal marshes are a key component of coastal seascape mosaics that support a suite of socially and economically valuable ecosystem services, including recreational opportunities (e.g., fishing, birdwatching), habitat for fisheries species, improved water quality, and shoreline protection. The capacity for tidal marshes to support these services is, however, threatened by increasingly widespread human

The green porcelain crab, Petrolisthes armatus, a subtropical/tropical species, was first recorded on intertidal oyster reefs in South Carolina in 1995. Since then, its range has expanded north in a series of surges and setbacks that appear to be associated with particularly cold winters that may cause mortality. Petrolisthes armatus reproduces year-round in its native range whereas its reproductive

Coastal estuaries provide essential juvenile habitat for many commercially and recreationally important fish, which may move between estuarine and coastal environments throughout their life. Identifying the most important estuarine nurseries that contribute to the broader stock can support targeted management of juvenile and spawning populations. The objective of this study was to (1) compare chemical

Many coastal-dependent species have undergone large-scale population declines due to impacts from habitat loss, including American oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus). Islands along the Big Bend region of Florida’s Gulf Coast provide important nesting habitat for oystercatchers, but reproductive success here is low and habitat degradation and loss are a major concern. To determine rates and characteristics

In the original article there is an error in Fig. 5.

Many elasmobranch species utilize estuaries as nurseries, parturition areas, and foraging grounds. Florida’s Indian River Lagoon (IRL), an “estuary of national significance,” has experienced many anthropogenic impacts in recent decades, such as habitat degradation and declining water quality, and there is a substantial data gap surrounding the status of elasmobranchs in this system. A fishery-independent

The metabolism of estuarine environments is often estimated by measuring changes in dissolved oxygen concentrations. A central assumption of common oxygen-based approaches is that oxygen consumption rates (primarily respiration) are similar under light and dark conditions. Evaluating this assumption is critical, especially in benthic-dominated systems, because differences between daytime and nighttime

During a 2-year study of planktonic nitrogen (N) nutrition, temporal variability of (1) ambient nutrient concentrations; (2) uptake rates of ammonium (NH4+), nitrate (NO3−), nitrite (NO2−), urea, and amino acids (AA) in three size fractions (> GF/F, > 5 μm, and 5–0.2 μm); (3) NH4+ regeneration and NO3− regeneration (nitrification); and (4) an unexpected bloom of Alexandrium monilatum were examined

Dispersal, retention, and population connectivity are impacted by current regime and the behaviors that drive larval distribution, so understanding both is key to informing restoration of native species like the Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida) across its range in western North America. This study explores the relationships between several factors (temperature, [chl a], larval size, tidal stage, and

Widespread invasion by non-native, submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) may modify the sediment budget of an estuary, reducing the availability of inorganic sediment required by marshes to maintain their position in the tidal frame. The instantaneous trapping rate of suspended sediment in SAV patches in an estuary has not previously been quantified via field observations. In this study, flows of water

Essential habitat is required for a given species to complete its lifecycle and includes habitat for breeding, feeding, and growth. Estuaries provide essential habitat for many fishes, including elasmobranchs, particularly as nurseries. Shore-based, gillnet surveys have documented ten elasmobranch species (sharks and batoids) inhabiting Texas estuaries; however, limitations in the methodology, spatial

In this study, results from a realistic 3D hydrodynamic and sediment transport model, applied to a channel in the Dutch Wadden Sea, are analyzed in order to assess the effect of short-term wind forcing, the impact of fresh water effects, and the variability induced by the spring-neap cycle on the transport of suspended sediment. In the investigated region, a pilot study for sediment nourishment, the

While organic and inorganic nutrient inputs from land are recognized as a major driver of primary production in estuaries, remarkably little is known about how processes within the tidal freshwater zones (TFZs) of rivers modify these inputs. This study quantifies organic matter (OM) decomposition rates in surface sediment layers in the lower reaches of two south Texas river channels and identifies

Low-inflow estuaries (LIEs) in Mediterranean climates located within regions of wind-driven coastal upwelling have seasonally minimal freshwater inflow, are supplied by nutrient-rich upwelled water, and often used for sustainable shellfish mariculture supported by a rich pelagic food web. They likely support endemic estuarine phytoplankton supplemented during the upwelling season with phytoplankton

Estuarine food webs are fueled by multiple different primary producers. However, identifying the relative importance of each producer to consumers is difficult, particularly for fishes that utilize multiple food sources due to both their mobility and their generally high trophic levels. Previous studies have documented broad spatial differences in the importance of primary producers to fishes within

The Eastern Barrier of Dunes (EBD) and Southern Barrier of Dunes (SBD) extend along the coast of Buenos Aires province, Argentina. These regions have been severely altered by anthropic activities for years, mainly through the development of cities and afforestation with exotic species. We quantified the effect of anthropic activities on the landscape of coastal dunes, evaluating its temporal evolution

To adequately protect habitat for economically important fishes, the habitats used must first be identified and described. Coastal geomorphology is often overlooked as an influential parameter of fish habitat use in favor of readily available data taken at the time of sampling. We hypothesized that river dynamics (e.g., length, watershed, floodplain connectivity) and mesohabitat categories based on

Species interactions may mediate the ability of organisms and communities to provide valued services but are rarely considered in forecasting how service provisioning will change as restored communities mature and change in species composition. Bivalves are foundational species in many communities that contribute to services such as habitat provisioning, water filtration, and denitrification but that

In the original article there are errors in the data of Fig. 3b. Following is the corrected figure.

Hydrographic measurements of salt wedge structure and dynamics spanning a 20-fold seasonal range of river discharges are used to investigate the seasonal variability in the strongly stratified Duwamish River Estuary. The effect of river discharge on salt wedge length, stratification, pycnocline thickness, and intratidal differences in salinity structure are evaluated. The salt wedge decreases in length

In 2013–2014, remote video and diver surveys documented fish assemblages around 150 small oil platforms in nearshore federal waters off the entire Louisiana coast (≤ 18 m depth). Results were used to evaluate ecological processes driving differences in fish abundance and assemblages associated with platforms. The nearshore zone was characterized by high spatial and temporal environmental heterogeneity

Hypoxia is common feature of eutrophic estuaries and semi-enclosed seas globally. One of the key factors driving hypoxia is nitrogen pollution. To gain more insight into the effects of hypoxia on estuarine nitrogen cycling, we measured potential nitrate reduction rates at different salinities and levels of hypoxia in a eutrophic temperate microtidal estuary, the Neuse River Estuary, North Carolina

Benthic microalgae play important roles in energy flow and biogeochemistry of coastal ecosystems; however, factors influencing community composition remain largely unknown. Our purpose was to identify and compare spatial and environmental influences on benthic diatom biogeography at regional scales. In summer 2018, we sampled sediment at various spatial scales (0.0001–180 km) from five saltmarshes

Simple flushing time calculations for estuarine systems can be used as proxies for eutrophication susceptibility. However, more complex methods are required to better understand entire systems. Understanding of the hydrodynamics driving circulation and flushing times in small, eutrophic, temperate estuaries is less advanced than larger counterparts due to lack of data and difficulties in accurately

Harmful blooms of cyanobacteria may extend over long time spans due to self-sustaining mechanisms. We hypothesized that settled blooms may increase redox-dependent P release and unbalance the stoichiometry of benthic nutrient regeneration (NH4+:SiO2:PO43− ratios). We tested this hypothesis in the hypertrophic Curonian Lagoon, the largest in Europe. During summer, at peak chlorophyll and water temperatures

We evaluated spatial, short-term, and decadal-scale variability in the summer ichthyoplankton assemblages within the North Inlet-Winyah Bay estuarine system, Georgetown County, South Carolina, USA. Ichthyoplankton were collected weekly from late May to early September 2016 on nighttime flood tides using a 1-m diameter, 1-mm mesh plankton net at three sites of varying salinity and proximity to inlets

High-magnitude storm events such as Hurricane Sandy are powerful agents of geomorphic change in coastal marshes, potentially altering their surface elevation trajectories. But how do a storm’s impacts vary across a large region spanning a variety of wetland settings and storm exposures and intensities. We determined the short-term impacts of Hurricane Sandy at 223 surface elevation table–marker horizon

Seagrass meadows are carbon (C) sinks and nitrogen (N)-limited ecosystems that experience degradation from climate change and anthropogenic stressors, including prop-scarring disturbances by boating vessels. To better understand the variability in C and N pools of undisturbed seagrass soils and the recovery of these pools following boat propeller scarring, we quantified organic carbon (Corg) and N

We investigate a mechanism for producing double-lows and double-highs in the semi-diurnal tide by selective amplification of higher harmonics in a resonant gulf. A double low water is observed at Providence, RI, near the head of Narragansett Bay on days when there is a flattening of the low water tidal curve at Newport, at the mouth of the bay. The flattening is caused by an unusually large quarter-diurnal

It is well established that juvenile bull sharks (Carcharhinus leucas) use rivers and estuaries as nursery areas; however, there is a large degree of variation in habitat preference (with respect to salinity and distance upstream) between studies at national and international scales. To investigate habitat preference and the influence of water quality on movement of bull sharks, we monitored 36 juveniles

Increasing the protection of coastal vegetated ecosystems has been suggested as one strategy to compensate for increasing carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere as the capacity of these habitats to sequester and store carbon exceeds that of terrestrial habitats. Seagrasses are a group of foundation species that grow in shallow coastal and estuarine systems and have an exceptional ability to sequester

The potential response of shoreface depositional environments to sea level rise over the present century and beyond remains poorly understood. The shoreface is shaped by wave action across a sedimentary seabed and may aggrade or deflate depending on the balance between time-averaged wave energy and the availability and character of sediment, within the context of the inherited geological control. For

Artificial reef communities undergo long periods of succession prior to becoming stable, but funding challenges often prevent post-deployment monitoring from evaluating long-term successional changes. The present study employed baited remote underwater video surveillance (BRUVS) to compare the species richness, diversity, abundance, and age structure of fishes across a 4-year-old artificial reef, a

From August 26 to 30, 2017, Hurricane Harvey inundated the Galveston Bay estuary in Texas with record-breaking rainfall. As a result, salinity levels in the bay declined rapidly from an average of 14 to < 1 ppt, altering aquatic habitat in the weeks following the storm. Long-term photo-identification monitoring efforts provided an opportunity to undertake a case study describing the effects of this

Human pressures on ecosystems from landscape transformation and harvesting can result in changes to body size and functional traits of affected species. However, these effects remain very poorly understood in many settings. Here we examine whether and how fishing and the attributes of coastal seascapes can operate in concert to change the body size and functional traits of the giant mud crab, Scylla

In coastal systems occupied by large clusters of pond aquaculture farms, hydro-sedimentary processes may be impacted by the combination of water management strategies that are individually performed by each cultivation unit. In this study, a numerical model was used to evaluate 100-year morphological alterations in two different idealized coastal lagoons surrounded by shrimp ponds. One is broadly based

River discharge has an important influence on the chemistry of Arctic shelf seas and surface waters. In this study, we examined the changes in nutrient, trace metal, dissolved organic matter, dissolved inorganic carbon, alkalinity, and radium isotope distributions across the Mackenzie River delta and estuary in June 2016, and estimated trace element and isotopes fluxes from the Mackenzie River to the

Phytoplankton community species composition, diversity, biomass, and distribution experience constant changes because of seasonal and temporal variations. This study was done with the aim of describing the response to environmental and seasonal changes of the phytoplankton communities of a tropical estuary in the south of the Colombian Caribbean Sea (Gulf of Urabá) with an emphasis on potential producers

Plant invasion can affect nutrient cycling by changing the quantity and quality of litter entering the environment. To determine the effect of an alien species (Spartina alterniflora) invasion on the decomposition rates and nutrient dynamics of litter in the Min River estuary, three communities with differing levels of invasion, namely, a Cyperus malaccensis community (before invasion, BI stage), a

Recent developments in unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) have resulted in high-resolution digital elevation models (DEMs) of vulnerable coastal environments, including beach–foredune topography. If performed repetitively, they can offer an excellent tool to determine the spatial and temporal changes in the sediment budget, which may be required for proper land management. However, the quality of a UAV

In Alaska, interest in harvesting seaweeds for personal use is growing and information on potential impacts of this activity on sustainability of wild populations is lacking. This study provides information on reproductive timing and size, standing crop, and harvest rebound of three commonly harvested seaweeds in Southcentral Alaska: the rockweed, Fucus distichus; the sugar kelp, Saccharina latissima;

Oxygen flux measurements between oyster reefs and the overlying water column approximate total ecosystem metabolism, representing a potentially valuable reef monitoring tool. In this study, seasonal oxygen flux measurements were made over an intertidal Crassostrea virginica oyster reef on the Virginia (USA) coast using the non-invasive aquatic eddy covariance (AEC) technique. Reef respiration (R) ranged

The effects of sea level rise are now beginning to be detected in seagrass ecosystems. The present work deals with how sea level rise translates into changes on seagrass distribution at local scale and how to provide reliable information and tools to predict the vulnerability of shallow coastal ecosystems to the expected effects. To evaluate mid- and long-term changes in the habitat suitability of

To determine the factors controlling variations in the biomass (B), abundance (A), and mean individual biomass (B/A) of mesozooplankton in a subtropical eutrophic bay, a random forest model was used to analyze the effects of physicochemical factors and phytoplankton biomass, size, and taxonomic composition on the variations in B, A, and B/A of mesozooplankton using 100 samples from all four seasons

We developed a method to predict the susceptibility of New Zealand estuaries to eutrophication. This method predicts macroalgae and phytoplankton responses to potential nutrient concentrations and flushing times, obtained nationally from simple dilution models, a GIS land-use model and physical estuary properties. Macroalgal response was based on an empirically derived relationship between potential

Tropical cyclones are major disturbances for coastal systems. Hurricane Harvey made landfall in Texas, USA, on August 25, 2017 as a category 4 storm. There were two distinct disturbances associated with this storm that were spatially decoupled: (1) high winds causing direct damage and storm surge, and (2) high rains causing scouring floods and significant discharge of fresh water carrying carbon and